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Monday, December 10, 2012

Abdullah Ibn Umar (Son of Umar Bin Khattab) R.A

Abdullah Ibn Umar (R.A.) At Shaykhan, halfway between Madinah and Uhud,
the thousand strong Muslim army led by the Prophet stopped. The sun had
begun to sink beneath the horizon. The Prophet dismounted
from his horse Sakb. He was fully dressed for battle. A turban was
wound about his helmet. He wore a breastplate beneath which was a coat
of mail which was fastened with a leather sword belt. A shield was slung
across his back and his sword hung from his side. As the sun set, Bilal
called the adhan and they prayed. The Prophet then reviewed his troops
once more and it was then that he noticed in their midst the presence of
eight boys who despite their age were hoping to take part in the
battle. Among them were Zayd's son Usamah and Umar's son Abdullah, both
only thirteen years old. The Prophet ordered them all to return home
immediately. Two of the boys however demonstrated that they were able
fighters and were allowed to accompany the army to the Battle of Uhu d
while the others were sent back to their families.

From an
early age, Abdullah ibn Umar thus demonstrated his keenness to be
associated with the Prophet in all his undertakings. He had accepted
Islam before he was ten years old and had made the Hijrah with his
father and his sister, Hafsah, who was later to become a wife of the
Prophet. Before Uhud he was also turned away from the Battle of Badr and
it was not until the Battle of the Ditch that he and Usamah, both now
fifteen years old and others of their age were allowed to join the ranks
of the men not only for the digging of the trench but for the battle
when it came. From the time of his hijrah till the time of his death
more than seventy years later, Abdullah ibn Umar distinguished himself
in the service of Islam and was regarded among Muslims as "the Good One,
son of the Good One", according to Abu Musa al-Ashari. He
was known for his knowledge, his humility, his generosity, his piety,
his truthfulness, his incorruptibility and his constancy in acts of
ibadah. From his great and illustrious father, Umar, he learnt a great
deal and both he and his father had the benefit of learning from the
greatest teacher of all, Muhammad the Messenger of God. Abdullah would
observe and scrutinize closely every saying and act ion of the Prophet
in various situations and he would practise what he observed closely and
with devotion. For example, if Abdullah saw the Prophet performing
Salat in a particular place, he would later pray in the same place. If
he saw the Prophet making a supplication while standing, he would also
make a dua while standing. If he saw him making a dua while sitting, he
would do the same. On a journey if he saw the Prophet descend from his
camel at a particular place and pray two rakats, and he had occa sion to
pass on the same route, he would stop at the same place and pray two
rakats. In a particular place in Makkah, he once observed the
Prophet's camel making two complete turns before he dismounted and
prayed two rakats. It might be that the camel did that involuntarily but
Abdullah ibn Umar when he happened to be in the same place at another
time, made his camel complete two turns before making it kneel and
dismounting. He then prayed two rakats in precisely the same manner as
he had seen the Prophet do. Aishah, may God be pleased with her,
noticed this devotion of Abdullah to the Prophet and remarked: "There
was no one who followed the footsteps of the Prophet, may God bless him
and grant him peace, in the places where he alighted as did Ibn Umar."
In spite of his close observance of the Prophet's actions, Abdullah was
extremely cautious, even afraid, of reporting the sayings of the
Prophet. He would only relate a hadith if he was completely sure that he
remembered every word of it. One of his contemporaries said: "Among the
companions of the Prophet, no one was more cautious about adding to or
subtracting from the hadith of the Prophet than Abdullah ibn Umar."
Similarly he was extremely cautious and reluctant to make legal
judgments (fatwas).' Once someone came to him asking for a judgment on a
particular matter and Abdullah ibn Umar replied: "I have no knowledge
of what you ask." The man went on his way and Ab dullah clapped his
hands in glee and said to himself: "The son of Umar was asked about what
he does not know and he said: I do not know." Because of this
attitude he was reluctant to be a qadhi even though he was well
qualified to be one. The position of qadhi was one of the most important
and esteemed offices in the Muslim society and state bringing with it
honor, glory and even riches but h e declined this position when it was
offered him by the Khalifah Uthman. His reason for so doing was not that
he underestimated the importance of the position of qadhi but because
of his fear of committing errors of judgment in matters pertaining to
Islam. Uthman made him agree not to disclose his decision lest it might
influence the many other companions of the Prophet who actually
performed the duties of judges and juris consults. Abdullah ibn Umar was
once described as the "brother of the night." He would stay up at night
performing Salat, weeping and seeking God's forgiveness and reading
Quran. To his sister, Hafsah, the Prophet once said: "What a blessed man
is Abdullah. Should he perform Salat at night he would be blessed even
more." From that day, Abdullah did not abandon qaiyam alLayl whether at
home or on journeys. In the stillness of the nights, he would remember
God much, perform Salat and read the Quran and weep. Like his father,
tears came readily to his eyes especially when he heard the warning
verses of the Quran. Ubayd ibn Umayr has related that one day
he read these verses to Abdullah ibn Umar: "How then (will the sinners
fare on Judgment Day) when We shall bring forward witnesses from within
every community and bring you (O Prophet) as witness against them? Those
who were bent on denying the truth and paid no heed to the Apostle will
on that Da y wish that the earth would swallow them but they shall not
(be able to) conceal from God anything that has happened." (Surah
an-Nisa, 4:41-42). Abdullah cried on listening to these verses until his
beard was moist with tears. One day, he was sitting among some close
friends and he read: "Woe unto those who give short measure, those who,
when they are to receive their due from people, demand that it be given
in full but when they have to measure or weigh whatever they owe to
others, give less than what is due. Do they not know that they are bound
to be raised from the dead (and called to account) on an awesome Day,
the Day when all men shall stan d before the Sustainer of all the
worlds?" (The Quran, Surah al Mutaffifin, 83: 1-6). At this point he
kept on repeating "the Day when all men shall stand before the Sustainer
of all the worlds" over and over again and weeping until he was faint.
Piety, simplicity and generosity combined in Abdullah to make him a
person who was highly esteemed by the companions and those who came
after them. He gave generously and did not mind parting with
wealth even if he himself would fall in want as a result. He was a
successful and trustworthy trader throughout his life. In addition to
this he had a generous stipend from the Bayt al-Mal which he would often
spend on the poor and those in need. Ayyub ibn Wail ar-Rasi recounted
one incident of his generosity: One day Umar received four thousand
dirhams and a velvet blanket. The following day Ayyub saw him in the suq
buying fodder for his camel on credit. Ayyub then went to Abdullah's
family and asked: "Didn't Abu Abdur-Rahman (meaning Abdullah ibn Umar)
get four thousand dirhams and a blanket yesterday?" "Yes, indeed," they
replied. "But I saw him today in the suq buying fodder for his camel and
he had no money to pay for it." "Before nightfall yesterday. he had
parted with it all. Then he took the blanket and threw it over his
shoulder and went out. When he returned it was not with him. We asked
him about it and he said that he had given it to a poor person," they
explained. Abdullah ibn Umar encouraged the feeding and the helping of
the poor and the needy. Often when he ate, there were orphans and poor
people eating with him. He rebuked his children for treating the rich
and ignoring the poor. He once said to them: "You invite the rich and
forsake the poor." For Abdullah, wealth was a servant not a master. It
was a means towards attaining the necessities of life, not for acquiring
luxuries. He was helped in this attitude by his asceticism and simple
life-style. One of his friends who came from Khurasan once
brought him a fine elegant piece of clothing: "I have brought this thawb
for you from Khurasan," he said. "It would certainly bring coolness to
your eyes. I suggest that you take off these coarse clothes you have and
put on this beautiful thawb." "Show it to me then," said Abdullah and
on touching it he asked: "Is it silk?" "No, it is cotton," replied his
friend. For a little while, Abdullah was pleased. Then with his right
hand he pushed away the thawb and said: "No! I am afraid for myself. I
fear that it shall make arrogant and boastful. And God does not love the
arrogant boaster." Maymun ibn Mahran relates the following: "I entered
the house of Ibn Umar. I estimated everything in his house including his
bed, his blanket, his carpet and everything else in it. What I found
was not a hundred dirhams' worth." That was not because Abdullah ibn
Umar was poor. Indeed he was rich. Neither was it because he was a miser
for indeed he was generous and liberal.